22 THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 
to a distilling flask, made strongly alkaline, and distilled in a current 
of steam. Nicotine was extracted from the distillate by shaking it 
twice with chloroform. The chloroform solution was dried over 
potassium hydroxide, filtered, and heated on the water bath till as 
much of the chloroform as possible had been expelled. The residue 
of nicotine was still rather dark coloured. It was finally purified by 
distillation in a reducing atmosphere, the first runnings of the distillate 
being rejected as probably contaminated with chloroform. 
To produce the reducing atmosphere a stream of illuminating 
gas was employed. It was first passed through a quartz tube heated 
at one point by a blast lamp. Thence it was passed in succession 
through a strong solution of potassium hydroxide, strong sulphuric 
acid, and a column of dry granulated calcium chloride, after which it 
reached the distillation apparatus. 
The nicotine produced by the above process was colourless and 
almost devoid of smell. It mixed with water without the formation 
of any cloud. 
Determination No. 1. A sample of nicotine, purified as above, 
weighing 8-6416 grammes, was dissolved in water, made up to 250 
cb.c., and thoroughly mixed. On examination in the polarimeter this 
solution read — 15-7 Ventzke sugar scale divisions. A reading was 
taken again and found unchanged after standing for twenty-four 
hours. This corresponds to a negative rotation of one division for 
0-22016 gramme of nicotine in 100 cb.c. of solution. 
Determination No. 2. The sample of nicotine, purified as above 
but from another preparation, weighed 8-6068 grammes. It was 
dissolved in 250 cb.c. of water and treated exactly as in the previous 
case. Polarimeter reading, — 15-8 sugar scale divisions, so that one 
division corresponded to 0-21789 gramme of nicotine in 100 cb.c. of 
solution. 
Determination No. 3. This sample was from the same preparation 
of nicotine used in No. 2. The weight taken was 4:2282 grammes, 
which was dissolved in 100 cb.c. of water. Polarimeter reading was 
— 19-1 sugar seale divisions, so that one division corresponded to 
0.22137 gramme of nicotine in 100 cb.c. of solution. 
Taking the mean of all three determinations we find that a nega- 
tive reading of one Ventzke sugar scale division corresponds to 0-2198 
gramme of nicotine in 100 cb.c. of solution. For practical purposes 
we may take the figure to be 0: 220.1 

1The better to assure ourselves of the correctness of the polarimeter readings in 
these three determinations, we availed ourselves of the assistance of Miss Florence 
M. Burt, Sugar Tester to the Customs Department, who is naturally more expert 
than most chemists in the use of this instrument. Her readings exactly agreed 
with ours. We wish to express our thanks for the aid thus kindly rendered. 
